Hairline Cracks
by Beevomit
Summary: They were going to need a bigger bathtub...or maybe therapy. Either one. One-shot, Canon Divergence.


When Hermione handed Remus his cup of hot chocolate (the good, strong Italian kind), she took the time to wrap his fingers around the warm mug, and to feed his hunger for touch.

"Does your head still hurt?" - She adjusted the cream knitted blanket draped around his shoulders - the full moon was tomorrow.

Remus pressed his face into her side, inhaling her scent. "_Fuck_ yes." He grinned, his teeth looking a little sharper in the candlelight. Her body shook slightly with laughter.

He _hated_ the moon, hated this day, but he found latching onto Hermione gave him some comfort. There was no thing as pride when it came to such pain, and fear.

Such lust.

_Perhaps later I will take her to my bed, /_

_or join her in the bath._

_or I could just fuck her right here, on this couch._

He was just beginning to press himself closer to her body when the phone rang, sending knives through his head.

"I'm sorry!" An oblivious Hermione exclaimed as he curled away from her in pain. "I thought I took it off the hook. I'll be right back."

Remus panted once she was gone, trying to regain control. His wolf was screaming for her. **He had to get himself under control.**

Footsteps, perfume.

"It's Sirius, he wanted to speak to you. He'd like to go out for drinks, I think."

The phone was pressed to the side of Remus' face, and he took it into his hand while Hermione walked over to tend to the fireplace.

"Mooney...!"

Remus sighed, pinched the bridge of his nose, and sunk into the couch.

"I'm not going, Sirius."

There was the sound of Sirius sighing, probably blowing cigarette smoke from his nose. "Oh, well that _is_ a shame. I was just about to tell you that if you _didn't_ come, I would tell Hermione about _that_ night!"

"..."

"Sixth year, the evening before the full moon. That abandoned bathroom? You haven't forgotten, have you? I'm hurt! It was my first time with a - "

"What time shall we meet?"

* * *

"You are truly lovelier than the stars, Hermione."

The woman was well used to Sirius' flirtations by now, but there was something sincere about the way he spoke to her, and only her.

His words were dripping with milk and not honey, and his gaze stayed locked on her own instead of falling down to her chest. Hermione gave him a smile.

Needless to say, Remus (the wolf) was already not having a good time.

After some time in the awkward silence, Hermione removed herself - "I'm going to go and see if they have have any fresh cream for my tea."

Once Hermione had gone across the room , Sirius waited patiently for Remus to take a drink of his whiskey before resting his cheek on his hand and murmuring,

"So, have you two fucked yet?"

And, right up the nose! Ouch.

"Padfoot!" Remus exclaimed, pressing a napkin to his face in a panic, "I thought we agreed you should never do that with fire whiskey!"

Sirius smirked.

"Mooney...I just wanted to snap you out of it. Your pupils are dilated."

The werewolf's face fell, his hair falling to cover his eyes as he bowed his head. "I... I can't hurt her. Not her."

Sirius took his friend's weathered hands in his own, shaky ones. Scars brushed against scars and the animagus sighed in a bone deep sort of way.

"When did we become so fucking..._old_, Remus?"

Remus laughed breathlessly. A tear fell onto the table, then another.

Sirius took his friend's hand and raised it to his mouth, until...

"I'm going to scream if you don't leave me alone."

Remus was out of his seat before Sirius registered the angry , _frightened_whisper, even with his dog-like ears, followed by a terrible gasp of pain.

By the time he made it over to the dark corner, an upset Hermione was pressed behind a furious Remus, who had a man by his shirt collar.

"Are you alright, love?" Sirius murmured, shoving past the two werewolves (he could smell it on the other man, too) to reach Hermione. "Shit, are you _bleeding?"_

There was a bloody bite mark on her neck, and now it was Sirius' turn to snarl at the man in Remus' grip...the man whose teeth were stained red.

And his pants were undone.

In more of a growl than English, Remus snarled, "I'm going to kill you...you..." His pupils were so dilated his eyes were practically ink. The predator's hair was already matted with blood from his head being cracked against the wall.

Uh oh.

"Hermione, love," Sirius shrugged off his heavy, wine-colored coat and settled it over Hermione's shoulders like a blanket, "take him home. I'll join you after I beat the rest of the shit out of this bastard."

The animagus then strong armed his friend and practically tossed him into Hermione's grasp. The two disappeared with a pop soon after.

* * *

"Remus, Remus." He was more animal then man now, snarling, blood dripping from his mouth. "It's alright."

He grabbed her roughly.

"You smell...awful," he growled, staring at the oozing wound on her neck.

"It's alright now," she soothed again, feeling a little out of her depth. "Sirius will be here soon. I'll take a bath. Wash that..._animal's_ smell off of me."

His heartbeat was like a hummingbird. Perhaps a panic attack. Lovely.

"I'll join - _may_ I join you? I'll wash your body myself."

"_what?"_

* * *

Sirius slunk his way into his old home with bloody knuckles. He still hated this place, but he could stomach it now, at least.

"Mooney...? Hermione, love?"

There was a faint call of, "I'm in here," and Sirius barged into the bathroom to find Remus and Hermione in the bathtub together. the werewolf had fallen asleep, and she was holding his head above the water.

"Might as well hop on in." Hermione sighed. "Im sure sitting in this tiny bathtub with _two_ emotionally unstable old men is much better than sitting with just _one_."

Sirius laughed.


End file.
